Can a concealed-carry license applicant in Arkansas have fingerprints taken on a manual ink card and then scanned and emailed in?

Plain-English summary

Representative Charlene Fite asked whether an Arkansas concealed-carry license applicant could have fingerprints taken on a paper ink card, then scanned and submitted electronically, instead of going to a live-scan station that captures the prints digitally to begin with. A concealed-carry instructor had been told by law enforcement that only live-scan prints are accepted.

Attorney General Leslie Rutledge concluded the law-enforcement reading is correct. Section 12-12-1005 requires noncriminal-justice background checks (which is the category that covers concealed-carry licensing) to be submitted to the Division of Arkansas State Police "by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System." The statute does not define "Online Criminal Background Check System," but it refers to a single existing system, and the system in place only accepts live-scan electronic fingerprints, not scans of paper cards. A scanned ink card is therefore not a valid submission method, and the answer to Representative Fite's question is no under the current system.

The opinion observed in a footnote that another statute, § 12-12-1510, contemplates integration of the automated fingerprint identification system with the criminal history information maintained by the Arkansas Crime Information Center. The footnote suggests this is the source of the technical architecture that requires direct electronic capture.

What this means for you

If you're an Arkansas concealed-carry applicant

You have to go to a live-scan station to get your fingerprints captured electronically. The Arkansas State Police website lists approved locations. A paper ink card from a sheriff's office or commercial vendor will not satisfy the requirement, even if it's scanned and emailed.

If you teach concealed-carry classes

Don't tell students they can use a paper-card service. The opinion is on point: under the current Online Criminal Background Check System, only live scan works for concealed-carry applications. Direct students to ASP-approved live-scan vendors.

If you run a sheriff's office or local PD that takes prints

If your office still takes manual ink-card prints (some still do for federal background checks or out-of-state employer checks), make clear to applicants that those prints cannot be used for an Arkansas concealed-carry license. They need a separate live-scan capture for that purpose.

If you're a firearms or licensing attorney

This opinion is the answer to "why was my client's mailed-in fingerprint card rejected by ASP?" The statutory hook is § 12-12-1005, the mandate is "by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System," and the system only takes live scans. If a client has been delayed, the path forward is a live-scan capture, not legal challenge to the system.

Common questions

Q: What is "live scan"?
A: A digital fingerprint capture system that records prints directly onto an electronic record without ink or paper, then submits them through the state's online system. Most live-scan stations are operated by ASP, sheriffs' offices, or approved commercial vendors.

Q: What if I'm out of state and can't get to an Arkansas live-scan station?
A: This opinion does not address out-of-state applicants. ASP procedures for out-of-state applicants are administrative and may differ. Contact the ASP Concealed Handgun Carry Licensing Section before paying for any out-of-state print service.

Q: Could the General Assembly change this?
A: Yes. The current statute requires submission "by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System," and the limitation is the system itself. Either the Legislature could amend the statute to authorize alternative formats, or ASP could change the system to accept scanned cards. Both are administrative or legislative actions, not legal ones.

Q: Why does ASP require live scan?
A: Live-scan captures are higher quality, less prone to smudging or rolling errors, and they integrate directly with the Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) that ACIC and ASP run. A scanned ink card adds a generation of image quality loss and forces a manual hand-off step.

Q: Does this rule apply to other Arkansas background checks?
A: § 12-12-1005 covers "noncriminal justice purpose" background checks generally. The same logic likely applies to other licenses that require an ASP-administered background check (foster parent, certain professional licensure, etc.), but the AG opinion specifically addresses concealed-carry. Each licensing scheme should be checked separately.

Background and statutory framework

Arkansas's concealed-handgun-carry licensing scheme sits in Subchapter 3 of Chapter 73 of Title 5. Section 5-73-309 lists eligibility requirements, including the requirement that an applicant complete a background check through ASP and the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Section 5-73-311(a)(3)(A) requires a "full set of fingerprints" as part of the application.

The submission method for those background checks is governed by § 12-12-1005, which sits in the criminal records / state police chapter. Subdivision (d)(1) provides that "a background check request for a noncriminal justice purpose that must be completed under state or federal law through the Division of Arkansas State Police shall be submitted to the division by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System."

The opinion's interpretive move is straightforward. The statute uses the definite article ("the Online Criminal Background Check System"), which contemplates a single system. The system that exists at the time of the opinion only accepts live-scan fingerprints. Therefore, "by electronic means through" the system means via live scan, and a scanned paper card is not "by electronic means through" the system, even though scanning produces an electronic file.

The opinion also notes (footnote 4) that § 12-12-1510 contemplates integration of AFIS with the ACIC's criminal history information. This is presumably the architectural backbone of the live-scan-only system: AFIS expects directly-captured prints to compare against its database, and image-quality differences from rescanned cards may degrade matching accuracy.

Citations and references

Statutes:

• Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1005 (Supp. 2021), electronic submission requirement
• Ark. Code Ann. § 5-73-309(6) (Supp. 2021), concealed-carry background check
• Ark. Code Ann. § 5-73-311(a)(3)(A), full set of fingerprints
• Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1510 (Repl. 2016), AFIS integration

Source

• Landing page: https://arkansasag.gov/divisions/opinions-foia/attorney-general-opinions-search/

Original opinion text

STATE OF ARKANSAS
ATTORNEY GENERAL
LESLIE RUTLEDGE

Opinion No. 2021-093

February 25, 2022

The Honorable Charlene Fite
State Representative
P. O. Box 7300
Van Buren, AR 72956-0262

Dear Representative Fite:

This is in response to your request for an opinion concerning fingerprint requirements in connection with concealed carry licensing. As background for your question, you report that a concealed-handgun-carry license instructor has been unsuccessful in his attempt to have students' fingerprints taken manually and then forwarded electronically to law enforcement because law enforcement "interprets Arkansas law to require a 'live scan' of any applicant's fingerprints." You ask:

Under Arkansas law, may an applicant for a conceal[ed] handgun carry license have his/her fingerprints taken manually and then submitted electronically to the proper law enforcement officials?

RESPONSE

I take it that your question contemplates scanning a manual fingerprint document and then sending the scanned file to the appropriate law enforcement officials. With that understanding, the answer is "no" under the current system, which only allows the direct submission of fingerprints that have been captured electronically.

DISCUSSION

The relevant statute, Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1005 (Supp. 2021), provides as follows:

A background check request for a noncriminal justice purpose that must be completed under state or federal law through the Division of Arkansas State Police shall be submitted to the division by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System.

A background check for purposes of obtaining a concealed-carry license is governed by this statute because an applicant must have "had his or her background check successfully completed through the Division of Arkansas State Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Instant Criminal Background Check System." A "full set of fingerprints" is required for the background check, the request for which must, according to section 12-12-1005, be submitted "by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System."

The term "Online Criminal Background Check System" is undefined in the statute. That having been said, the statute clearly contemplates one system. And the system currently in place does not allow a scanned, manual fingerprint card, but rather only allows the direct submission of electronic fingerprints. In requiring that the background check be submitted "by electronic means through the Online Criminal Background Check System," section 12-12-1005 allows for the current system.

The answer to your question, therefore, is "no" under the current, statutorily-authorized system.

Sincerely,

LESLIE RUTLEDGE
Attorney General

Footnotes:

1. Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1005(d)(1).
2. Ark. Code Ann. § 5-73-309(6) (Supp. 2021).
3. Id. at § 5-73-311(a)(3)(A).
4. Another statute contemplates the "integration of the automated fingerprint identification system." See Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-1510(a)(3)(C), (c)(1) (Repl. 2016). While it is not entirely clear, this may be the genesis of the current system through which criminal history information (maintained by the Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC)) and fingerprints (maintained by the Arkansas State Police Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS)), are linked.